Apparatus for preparing samples for X-ray analysis



June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE 3,333,427

APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS Filed Nov. 19, 1964 4Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. l M

FIG. 2 66 l 54 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY ALLAN H. SMALLBONE June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE APPARATUS FORPREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS w OE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov.19, 1964 INVENTOR ALLAN H. SMALLBONE ATTORNEY June 18, 1968 A. H.SMALLBONE 3,388,427

APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS lNVEN TOR.

ALLAN H. SMALLBONE ATTORNEY June 18, 1968 A. H. SMALLBONE APPARATUS FORPREPARING SAMPLES FOR X-RAY ANALYSIS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Nov. 19,1964 OF OE INVENTOR. ALLAN H. SMALLBONE 0 m N: H A mm we. a y 5: J 7 5mo.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,388,427 APPARATUS FOR PREPARING SAMPLESFOR X-RAY ANALYSIS Allan H. Smallbone, La Crescenta, Califi, assignor toApplied Research Laboratories, Inc., Glendale, Califi, a corporation ofDelaware Filed Nov. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 412,489 4 Claims. (Cl. 18-165)ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSEURE A briquetting machine including a centralhub rotatable about a vertical axis and carrying a radial arm with avertical bore at its outer end. Pistons are reciprocatable on the arminto and out of the bore, and into and out of coaxial alignment with thebore. A cam and connecting rod arrangement drives the pistons inresponse to rotation of the central hub.

Brief summary This invention relates to a novel apparatus for preparingspecimen materials for presentation to X-ray analytical instruments,and, more particularly, to novel apparatus for making briquettessuitable for analysis by spectrometric methods.

One method of preparing specimens of solid materials for spectrometricanalysis, particularly by X-ray techniques, is first to pulverize aportion of the material to be analyzed, mix the resulting pulverulentmass, and then form briquettes of it. Heretofore, the briquettes havegenerally been made laboriously and tediously, hand filling specialmolds fitted in hydraulic or screw presses, and then extracting thebriquettes from the molds by hand. High pressure compaction is necessaryto insure adequate and uniform spectrometric results. This procedure issatisfactory for occasional analyses, but is uneconomic and undesirablyslow for repetitive and frequent routine analyses that are required forefficient production control in modern processing plants such as modernore concentrators.

For efiicient control of materials processing, it is often necessary toprovide analyses of various materials in the process stream at fairlyfrequent intervals, and to make the analytical results available to theresponsible personnel as quickly as possible after each specimen istaken.

The apparatus of the present invention is designed to produce briquettesfor spectrometric analysis quickly and cheaply, and thereby tofacilitate efl'icient production control at minimum cost.

Briefly, the machine according to a presently preferred embodiment ofthe invention includes a central member mounted for rotation about avertical axis. The member carries means defining a bore parallel to andspaced from the axis of rotation, and pistons mounted for travel intoand out of the bore and into and away from coaxial alignment with thebore. Cams are fixed generally coaxially with the axis of rotation, andthe central member carries cam followers engaging the cams and linked tothe pistons for driving the pistons in response to rotation of thecentral member.

The arrangement is simple and inexpensive. It also facilitates loadingof the powders to be briquetted, unloading of the finished briquettes,and enables the use of an auxiliary high powered press to produce anydesired degree of compaction.

Detailed description A presently preferred embodiment of the inventionwill now be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic, plan view of apparatus for forming briquettesaccording to the invention;

3,338,427 Patented .lune 18, 1968 FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, sideelevational view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, looking in thedirection of the arrow 3 therein;

FIG. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 are fragmentary, side elevational views of aportion of the apparatus illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, showingsuccessive steps in the operation thereof;

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1-8;and

FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of the portion shown in FIG. 9.

Referring first to FIGS. 1-8, the briquette-forming apparatus of theinvention comprises a central hub 40 journalled for rotation in ahorizontal plane. Six angularly spaced operating arms 44, 45, 46, 47,48, and 49, respectively, are fixed to the hub 40, and extend radiallyoutwardly from it like the spokes of a wheel. There is a vertical bore50 extending through each of the arms 44-49 near its outer end. Each arm44-49 carries a pair of pistons 52 and 54, which are movable selectivelyinto and out of the bore 50, and toward and away from coaxial alignmentwith the bore.

The pistons 52 and 54 are operated by a cam and connecting rodarrangement, which will be described hereinafter in connection withFIGS. 9 and 10. The sequence of operation of the pistons 52 and 54 isillustrated in FIGS. 3 to 8, and will be described herein in relation tothe first arm 44, it being understood that all of the arms 44-49 are ofidentical construction and move in succession through the same operatingsequence.

The pistons 52 and 54 are mounted upon respective upper and lower levers56 and 58, respectively, which move along and pivot upon the top andbottom, respectively, of the arm 44. The pistons 52 and 54 are pivotedat the outer ends of the levers 56 and 58, and the levers 56 and 58 arecontrolled by separate pairs of connecting rods 61 and 62, and 63 and64, respectively, which are parts of the arrangement to be describedhereinafter. For the present, it is sufiicient if it is understood thatthe levers 56 and 58 can be pushed lengthwise of the arm 44 by theirrespective push rods 61 and 63, and their inner ends can be raised andlowered by their respective, pin-in-slot connecting rods 62 and 64,respectively.

When the arm 44 is at the first station, station A, the lower piston 54is at its position of maximum advance into the bore 50, and fills aboutthree-quarters of the bore. The upper piston 52 is retracted away fromthe bore 50, leaving the upper end of the bore open. At this position, abore may be cleaned and a briquette backing plate 66 inserted in it.During travel of the arm 44 from station A to station B, the upperpiston 52 remains in its radially inward, retracted position, and thelower piston 54 is moved slightly downwardly to provide space for acharge of powdered material 68 in the upper part of the bore. The chargeof material 68 is placed in the bore 50 at station B. During travelbetween station B and station C, the lower piston 54 is held steady, andthe upper piston 52 is advanced radially outwardly and lowered into thebore 50 with appreciable force, as developed by the pin-in-slotconnecting rods 62 and 64. During this and the succeeding indexing step,the force is maintained to apply a preliminary briquetting pressure onthe powdered material 68.

When the arm 44 reaches station D, it comes between the jaws 70 and 71of a press, which is actuated to compress the powdered material 68 toform a rigid briquette 68' with a compacting force greatly in excess ofthe force available through operation of the connecting rods and camarrangement. The press is released and the jaws 70 and '71 retractedbefore the arm 44 is indexed again.

During the next two indexing steps, that is, between stations D and Eand stations E and F, the lower piston 54 is withdrawn from the bore 50and retracted inwardly 3 to stand clear of the bore, and the upperpiston 52 is driven downwardly into the bore to drive the briquette 63out. As the arm 44 approaches the last station, station F, the lowerpiston 5 is driven outwardly, positively to disengage the briquettc 68'from the arm and to deposit the briquette in a receptacle (not shown) orupon a conveyor belt 74 for delivery to the analysis room. As the hub 40completes its rotation, bringing the arm 44 back to the first station A,the upper piston 52 is withdrawn from the bore 50 and retractedinwardly, while, simultaneously, the lower piston 54 is driven upwardlyinto the bore 50 in position to receive and support the next backingplate The operation as described comprises six. steps, and for maximumefiiciency combined with economy of construction, the apparatus includessix arms 4449, which is the minimum number that allows all sixoperations to be carried out simultaneously, each operation on adifferent successive specimen. The invention is not, however, limited toa six-armed device. Any desired number of arms may be used in accordancewith the designers choice.

Also, if it is desired to make successive briquettes of materials takenfrom various diiterent sources such as, for example, from variousdifferent flow streams in a smelter or concentrator, any desired numberof discharge hoppers 76 may be arranged at station 8 for successivealignment with the bore 50 in the arms. Such an arrangement isillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, which show a series of six hoppers '76mounted on a guideway '78 in fixed relation to each other and indexablealong the guideway synchronously with the indexing rotation of the hub40.

The construction of the hub 40 and arms 44 59 according to thisembodiment of the invention is shown in detail in FIGS. 9 and 10. Sinceall of the arms -49 are identical, only one is shown. The hub 40 isjournaled between upper and lower eccentric earns 84 and 86,respectively, which are fixed against rotation. An upper cam cylinder 88bearing a cam groove S t) is fixed to the upper eccentric cam 84 incoaxial alignment with the hub 4%. Similarly, a lower cam cylinder 92bearing a lower cam groove 94 is fixed to the lower eccentric cam 86 incoaxial alignment with the hub 40.

The hub 46 is rotatably secured between upper and lower thrust bearings$7 and 9?, which are fitted respectively between the hub 49 and theupper eccentric cam 84, and between the hub 40 and the lower eccentriccam 86. The hub 4-0 is rotated through a hollow drive shaft 101, whichis fixed coaxially to the hub, and extends downwardly through the lowercams 86 and 92. The assembly of the earns 84, 86, 88, and 92, and thehub 4-9 is secured by a tie rod 103, which fits within the drive shaft101 and is fixed at its upper end to the upper cam cylinder 38. Thelower end of the tie rod 103 extends below the lower end of the driveshaft 1&1 and is fixed to a rigid frame member (not shown), The tie rod103 serves the dual purpose of securing the assembly and of holding theupper cams 84 and 88 against rotation.

The arms 44-49 are fixed along the rim of the hub 49 and extend radiallyoutwardly from it. The bores 50 at the outer end of the arms 4-4-49 arepreferably provided with hardened steel liners 96 for maximum wearingqualities, and the end surfaces of the liners 96 are preferablychamfered to help guide the pistons 52 and 54 into the bore.

The levers 56 and 58 carry rollers 98 at their fulcrums, which are cagedwithin guideways 1G8 and 1&2, re spectively, on top of and beneath thearms 4449. The push-pull connecting rods 61 and 63 are pivoted at thefulcrums of the levers 56 and 58., respectively, and carry cam followers196, which ride on the respective upper and lower eccentric cams 8d and86, respectively. The connecting rods 61 and 63 are biased inwardly intopressure engagement against the cams 8-? and 86 by any desired meanssuch as the springs 108 illustrated. The connccting rods 61 and 63 servealternately to advance and retract the levers 56 and 58 in accordancewith the rises and falls of the cams 8d and 86.

For raising and lowering the pistons 52 and 54, other connecting rods 62and 64 are pin-in-slot connected to the radially inner ends of thelevers 56 and 58, and carry followers 112, which ride in the respectivecam grooves 90 and 94. When the cam groove 99 or 94 falls, that is, whenthe follower enters a portion of the cam groove 90 or 94 which isrelatively close to the hub 40, the connecting rod 62 or 64 moves theinner end of the lever 56 or 58 to which it is connected away from thearm 44, driving the outer end of the lever toward the arm 44 to insertthe piston 52 or 64 into the bore 55). Guide stops are mounted upon theupper and lower surfaces of the arms 44-49 adjacent to the bores 59 forguiding the pistons 52 and 54 and preventing them from tilting as theyare withdrawn from the hole 50. The bearings 124 by which the pistons 52and 54 are mounted upon the levers 56 and 58, are preferably made tightso that the pistons 52 and 54 do not rotate freely but tend to remain inthe angular positions relative to the levers 56 and 58 to which they aredriven by their sliding engagement with surface of the bore 50.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for chemical analysis byX-ray means comprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about an axis spaced fromsaid bore and parallel to the length thereof,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectivelyinto and out of said bore, and into and away from coaxial alignmenttherewith, and

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predeterminedsequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member.

2. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for chemical analysis byX-ray means comprising:

( 1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about an axis spaced fromsaid bore and parallel to the length thereof,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectivelyinto and out of said bore, and into and away from coaxial alignmenttherewith,

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predeterminedsequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member, and

(6) means for pressing said pistons together at a time when they areboth in said bore with a force greater than the force achievable by saidmeans for moving, thereby to compact a powdered material held betweensaid pistons and to form a briquette thereof.

3. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for X-ray analysiscomprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about a normally verticalaxis spaced from said bore and with the axis of said bore parallel tothe axis of rotation,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectivelinto and out of said bore thereof, and into and away from coaxialalignment therewith, and

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predeterminedsequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member, saidmoving means including, for each of said pistons:

(a) a pair of cams fixed at the axis of rotation of said member,

(b) a pair of followers for following said cams,

and

(0) connecting rods attached to said followers for driving the piston inaccordance with the rises and falls of the cams as said member rotates.

4. Apparatus for making briquettes suitable for X-ray analysiscomprising:

(1) a member having a bore open at both ends,

(2) means mounting said member for rotation about a normally verticalaxis spaced from said bore and with the axis of said bore parallel tothe axis of rotation,

(3) first and second pistons,

(4) means mounting said pistons on said member for travel selectivelyinto and out of said bore thereof, and into and away from coaxialalignment therewith,

(5) means for moving said pistons in accordance with a predeterminedsequence in timed relationship to the rotation of said member, saidmoving means including, for each of said pistons:

(a) a pair of cams fixed at the axis of rotation of said member,

(b) a pair of followers for following said cams,

and

(c) connecting rods attached to said followers for driving the piston inaccordance with the rises and falls of the cams as said member rotates,

(6) means for indexing said member between six angularly spacedstations, said earns being arranged to drive both of said pistons intosaid bore as said member approaches a selected one of the stations, and

(7) a press at the selected station for pressing said pistons togetherwith a force greater than the force achievable by said moving means,thereby to compact a powdered material held between said pistons and toform a briquette of the material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,568,956 9/1951 Fienberg et al.18--20 2,621,363 12/1952 Fienberg et al. 18-2O 2,904,835 9/1959 Thomas1820 3,129,464 4/1964 Heider l820 3,318,265 5/1967 Winters et al. 18-2()XR I. HOWARD FLINT, 111., Primary Examiner.

